The rivalry between Aryna Sabalenka and Marta Kostyuk has evolved from a political disagreement into one of tennis’s most talked-about feuds. What began during the fallout from the Russian invasion of Ukraine developed into a series of contentious on-court moments and off-court exchanges. The tension between the Belarusian and Ukrainian players has captured the attention of the tennis world, generating debate among fans and experts alike about sportsmanship and the pressures athletes face beyond the game.
The Evolution of Aryna Sabalenka and Marta Kostyuk’s Feud Over the Years
The tension between Sabalenka and Kostyuk has its roots in the geopolitical crisis between Belarus and Ukraine. Belarus is an ally of Russia and allowed Russian troops to use its territory to launch the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. This situation led Ukrainian players like Kostyuk to protest against Russian and Belarusian athletes, refusing handshakes and seeking public statements of opposition to the war. For Sabalenka, a Belarusian player, this created a complicated and sometimes hostile environment in professional tennis.
In 2023, Sabalenka revealed the darker side of these political tensions. In March, she disclosed that she had faced significant hate in the locker room from other players and tour members. She said dealing with this treatment was extremely difficult and had never experienced anything like it before in her career. These locker room tensions highlighted the challenging atmosphere surrounding Russian and Belarusian athletes during this period.
Their feud first exploded publicly at the 2023 French Open in May. Sabalenka defeated Kostyuk 6-3, 6-2 in the first round of the tournament. After the match, Kostyuk refused to shake Sabalenka’s hand as a protest gesture, and as a result, the crowd at Court Philippe-Chatrier reacted with loud boos as Kostyuk left the court. Sabalenka was initially confused by the boos, thinking they were directed at her, but she quickly realized they were aimed at Kostyuk.
In her post-match comments, Sabalenka said Kostyuk “did not deserve to be booed off the court that way.” Kostyuk responded by saying “people should be honestly embarrassed” by the crowd’s reaction and criticized Sabalenka for not personally condemning the war.
The feud reached a new boiling point at the Madrid Open in April 2025. During the quarterfinal match between the Belarusian and the Ukrainian, drama unfolded during the second-set tiebreak. With the score at 4-5 in the tiebreak and rain falling, Sabalenka missed her first serve. The chair umpire instructed her to continue playing, stating that the conditions allowed play to proceed.
However, Sabalenka stopped play and demanded that the court be covered. She later admitted that she had done this intentionally because she wanted to avoid a double fault. When play resumed, she received another first serve due to the interruption, giving her a significant advantage. Sabalenka won the tiebreak 7-4 and eventually won 7-6, 7-6, with no handshake following the match, continuing the pattern of hostility between them.
The most recent chapter in their feud involved misquoted comments from an editor that Kostyuk made in October 2025 at the Wuhan Open. When discussing her losses to Sabalenka and Iga Świątek, the media outlet published that these players possess natural physical advantages against her. The comments sparked immediate backlash from tennis fans and critics who viewed them as excuses for her losses.
Sabalenka responded in December, dismissing these claims as “excuses” and pointing out that physical differences are not the determining factor in tennis success. Now, these two players are set to face each other in the finals of the Brisbane International on Sunday, January 11, with the entire world watching closely as to what drama unfolds in their next meeting.